Meidra Sirin

There's Molly Malone’s And a guy who’s a tree A crazy old CloQ and he's been watching me And there's footsteps loud and strong coming from the Da’al A Tribble’s under the bed Now it's out on the loose, There’s award ceremonies - and barbecues And I hear crew mates escaping through a wall…. Goodnight Moon, Shivaree 1999

I am enjoying @Ikaia Wong’s journey to become a more confident leader, and the thought of multiple Wongs makes me giggle. ((Dreamscape)) Ikaia glanced around him, rubbing his eyes. He had been trying to decide which flu strain he should vaccinate against in the upcoming flu season. His bets were on either Levodian flu or Kamaraazite flu. He went over the statistics provided to him by Starfleet Medical. It looked to him that it might be Levodian. This wasn’t great. But the duration of the flu was shorter in most humanoids. But it didn’t make it any less contagious. He took a moment to lean back in his chair and just look up at the ceiling. By all appearances, he was in the CMO’s office again. It felt normal. Like home. This was great. This was fantastic. This was too good to be true. At that moment, Ikaia heard a knock on the door. He sat up and brushed himself off. Wong: Come in! The door opened and he saw… exactly TWO different versions of himself. One of them is sporting engineering gold with a wonderful beard. He also had a container of popcorn in his hands. The other was wearing command red with his hair down and…. Did he have coconuts shoved down his shirt?! Ikaia blinked a few times as both Klingons sat down. Wong: Ah! Uh! Greetings! How may I help you today? Gold-Wong: Hello, Lieutenant. It’s not so much as how you can help us…. Red-Wong: ….It's more like how we can help you. Wong: Uh okay. How so--- I’m sorry. Those coconuts are really distracting. Gold-Wong: See? Told you they’d distract him! Red-Wong: He shouldn’t be looking! Gold-Wong: Just ditch them. He already knows who you’re representing anyways! The Wong clad in red just sighed as he removed the coconuts from his shirt. But he did so with an eye roll. Ikaia gave a curious head tilt at his duplicates. They were clearly representing Rahman and Ukinix respectively. In a rare opportunity, he decided to ask a question he wouldn’t ordinarily ask! Wong: Ah! Quick question if you really don’t mind - Is Commander Ukinix’s beard lucky? Does he rub it for luck or something? Gold-Wong: Yes and yes. Every morning. Wong: ::Snaps his fingers:: Knew it! ::A beat:: Er… sorry. Please continue. Red-Wong: Okay. So we know you’ve been following Rahman’s and Ukinix’s advice as well as everything you’ve learned from your studies. Gold-Wong: You may not be thinking the words. But we have heard it - What would Rahman do? What would Ukinix do? What would Sampi do? The Wong in engineering gold tried to toss a piece of popcorn into the air to try to catch it. Instead, it rebounded off the side of his mouth and onto the floor. Wong: I learned a lot from them. Rahman, Ukinix, Toliver, Blake, Sampi… they’ve all taught me so much about leadership and myself. I’ve been working hard. Gold-Wong: In asking what everyone else would do, you also need to keep asking what you would do. You’ve learned so much from everyone else. But who are you as a leader? A tiny bit of dust fell on Ikaia's desk. He looked up and saw no reason for the dust. It had almost distracted him from the question. He was thinking about it. His mind searched for what the answer was. Wong: I….. I don’t know. I’m not sure. I’ve never really thought about it before. I’ve been busy applying theories and everything I learned. Some days, I’m not sure I’m even doing this right. There are times I second guess myself. Days I sometimes wonder if I made the right choice. Red-Wong: You’re going to need to figure it out. Everyone in the mine is counting on you. Wong: I know, I know! I just…. Need to think. A touch of rock dust fell onto Ikaia’s desk. Red-Wong: You may want to consider waking up. You fell asleep while meditating again. You’re definitely drooling a little. There was more dust falling onto the desk followed up by rocks. Ikaia looked up and an expression of absolute horror crossed his face as he could see a large boulder about to come straight down on him---- ((Deep within Russell River Mines)) ----Ikaia woke up suddenly with a loud gasp. His hand flew up to his chest and his breathing heavy. He quickly glances up at the roof of the mine and nothing. No boulder threatening to smash him. Nothing. For the moment, Ikaia was safe. Wong: ::A relieved sigh:: It’s just a dream…. He gave himself a moment or two to calm down as he reached up and touched his face. Sure enough, there was a touch of drool at the corner of his mouth. That was unbecoming. He wiped himself off with the back of his hand and picked up the SIMs beacon he had been using as a makeshift meditation candle. Although, he did have it off just to save power. Ikaia had also picked up the PADD with his playlist on it. Something that would have helped him meditate. Apparently, he had nodded off while listening to it. Ikaia paused for a moment. He had the feeling someone had been watching him. S’Ten: Response. Wong: Ah! Mister S’Ten! Sorry! I wasn’t expecting you. S’Ten: Response. Wong: Well, it’s a Vulcan technique. I went to the Academy with quite a few of them and well, I picked up a few things along the way. S’Ten: Response. Wong: How are you feeling? S’Ten: Response. Wong: Ah. So that’s what brought you by? S’Ten: Response Lieutenant JG Ikaia Wong Physician Assistant USS Veritas V239711IW0

As always, it’s a joy to write with someone so talented. Justin constantly inspires me to get out of my comfort zone and just let Meidra grow as a character.

Proof once and for all that Alieth started this mess, and Meidra was an innocent bystander!!

We all have hidden talents, @Etan Iljor !!

I can't wait to read Part 4, LOL

Meidra found out! LOL

This makes me want to stay indoors for the rest of my life. Great job!

“Grandmother, why does Grandfather hate me?” Meidra’s eyes were focused on the sea of stars revealed on the small ship’s viewscreen. The man had tried hitting her with his staff for not knowing some obscure historical fact in front of his business associates. She was seven years old, why should she care who won the Great Battle of Vogan? T’Ria frowned as she turned to the child. “He does not hate you, my child. He hates himself.” Meidra highly doubted that. If Samek loved anyone, logic insisted that it was himself. She continued watching the stars, wondering why she wasn’t good enough for him. Grandmother had told Meidra’s mother that she was taking her on a trip for a few days to further the girl’s interest in biology, there was a little cabin not too far away on a planet just far enough away, and she intended on visiting it with her granddaughter. Lenore had known better than to argue, and had sent them off with a wave and a guilty expression. Meidra believed it signified relief, but would not speak the thought aloud. Meidra landed the shuttle in the hour before dusk, taking care to not touch down near where she knew firebirds would have their nests. She’d been gone for far too long, the memories too raw to bear. But she had promised herself she’d put her past behind her now that she had a brighter future. If the counselor were to listen to her grandfather, journeys to the past were illogical. What was done, was done, and dwelling on history prevented one from moving forward. Of course, if one was a ruthless shipping magnate with poor impulse control, that philosophy made sense. They landed at sunset, the purple sky streaked with dark blue clouds. A storm was coming, and Meidra loved storms. She thought that if a big enough storm could just come to Vulcan, it might blow the bitterness from Grandfather’s heart. She frowned, it was just this type of fanciful nonsense that Samek despised from her most of all. They made their way through the thick forest, and Meidra smiled when she saw her castle in the trees that Grandmother’s friend Arid had made for her two years ago. It was good to be back where she felt safe. She could be a pirate, or a princess or a real Vulcan. She said as much to her grandmother, not seeing the look of sadness in T’Ria’s eyes. Days passed, and they made friends with the multi colored fish that lived in the nearby creek who seemed to sing each morning as they greeted the day. She was allowed to give them special treats that she had helped T’Ria make, with extra nutrients to help them keep their vibrant color and health. Meidra felt very important and special because her grandmother trusted her with taking care of all of the animals near the cottage. One night, Meidra and T’Ria sat round a small fire, roasting the sweet confections of gelled sugar her grandmother had sampled on Terra decades ago. They were sticky and had no discernable nutritional value. Grandfather would have hated them. So Meidra loved them. Plus they tasted like happiness. Slowly making her way through the small forest on Telstrus III, the counselor noted every sign of her past that still survived the years since she had last been here. The hand painted sign, Meidra’s Castle, pointed the way to a treehouse built from Goklim wood, only found on this small world. A discarded pirate’s flag from Rimla where the oceans still cradled wooden ships through fierce storms. She could almost hear her grandmother calling for her to come inside for end meal, and moments later she saw her summer refuge. The cottage was small, crafted from dusty grey and white stone, with a bubbly creek nearby filled with multicolored fish that let you hand feed them once trust was established. She wondered if they would remember her. Sighing, she remembered her last day here, on vacation with T’Ria, hiding from some perceived sin committed in her grandfather’s eyes. He’d flown into a rage, swearing he’d throw her out of his home until T’Ria had smuggled them both to this cottage to wait out the storm of his wrath. They’d spent the day picking flowers, telling secrets, and promising to come back each year to have a week together. Now, the house was kept up by Grandmother’s friend Arid, who never seemed to age. He greeted her with warmth, then left her to her memories. “Meidra, I do not bring you here to run away from your problems.” T’Ria seemed very serious, and so Meidra listened even more carefully, eyes wide. “You cannot run from them, none of us can. But what you can do is find a spot where you feel safe, and work through the pain to find your strength. There is no shame in taking a step back and letting others pass. The path will still be there when you are ready.” “But what if the path takes me somewhere scary, Ko’mekh-il?” T’Ria allowed herself the small smile she had for her favored grandchild. Pushing the dark red hair from Meidra’s eyes, she put her forehead against Meidra’s and whispered. “Then you make a new path, my child.” The winds were picking up, soon a storm would surround the small home. She closed her eyes, letting the breeze greet her. She smiled, feeling the arms of her grandmother as if she were there. So many lessons learned here, and so many more to share with someone, when the time was right. Grandmother would have welcomed the one Meidra would bring here, feeding them sugary treats and teaching them about the singing fish. “Meidra, come inside, you will blow away if you don’t shelter from the winds.” “Just a few more minutes, Ko’mekh-il, I’m pretending I’m a firebird and can just fly away.” She paused. “Grandfather would like that, I think.” The old Vulcan woman came outside and scooped the child up into her strong, loving arms. “You are a treasure, my lara, and you are worth more than all of his gold.” Lara, Meidra thought. A pretty blue bird that soared amongst the heavens. She looked up at the sky. Someday, she would soar through the stars, she just knew it. Sitting near a campfire, watching the flames, Meidra put a marshmallow on a stick, just as T’Ria had shown her so long ago. As the fire kissed the sweetness, she realized it was yet another metaphor to be savored, The flames come close, but if you stay vigilant, they can’t engulf you. “I found someone, Grandmother. He’s kind and you would have loved him as I do.” Meidra felt the peace of this place shelter her as it had throughout her childhood. Many times over the years, she'd come here to remake her path, and it had always led her to better things, and a stronger sense of who she was meant to be. It had been a long road, getting from there to here. She slowly ate her treat, then sat back, and listened as the sounds of the forest welcomed her home.

I can see this scene so clearly and know Aine had an amazing career. Well done. I look forward to seeing her live out some of these adventures while she’s on Resolution.

I can’t stop laughing. When I do, I’ll tell you how brilliant this is. Well done, sir.

I cannot wait to say witty and wacky things about the crew.

Every time I think that Justin can't break my heart with his writing, he posts something like this and proves me wrong. Just a beautiful, tragic fate for this little boy. I can only hope that someone rescues him from it.

@Quen Deena you are helping me get to know Sern and I am so grateful. This post was amazing work.

As always, the team of Teller and Alieth does not disappoint. I look forward to seeing how this all plays out.